SkyCargo expands its network to Islamabad

Emirates SkyCargo places its first Airbus freighter in the sky to serve the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.

Emirates SkyCargo has launched services to Islamabad using its newly acquired Airbus A310 Freighter. SkyCargo received the aircraft earlier this month from EADS/EFW in Germany, after it underwent four months of downtime, being converted from a passenger aircraft to a freighter. Boosting existing capacity, the new service will help Islamabad export larger volumes of surgical equipment, leather goods and garment. It will also be used to import raw materials and spares that are needed to support Pakistan’s manufacturing industry. The freighter will not only serve Islamabad once a week but it will also be used to serve Istanbul, Chennai and Amman. “We have always been keen to launch a freighter service to Islamabad but were constrained by fleet capacity. Now, however, with the A310F in our fleet, the city is finally on our freighter route network,” said Hiran Perera, vice president for cargo — freighters, Emirates. “We are also extremely pleased with the freighter’s performance as it has been inducted at a very opportune moment with demand peaking in several destinations on our network,” he added. Emirates SkyCargo also serves Islamabad with a belly hold capacity in the airline’s passenger jets five times a week, offering more than 80 tonnes of payload, which is now augmented to 120 tonnes by the new freighter service. The wide-bodied A310-300F has a gross payload of 39 tonnes and also has Auxiliary Centre Tanks to increase its range, enabling one-stop operations from Dubai to America and countries in the South Pacific. Two more A310Fs are scheduled to enter Emirates fleet by the end of the year.